As a new terminal published by a terminal manufacturer appears on the market faster and faster, a software version of the terminal appearing on the market has some bugs or parts urgently needing to improve the user experience inevitably, or even has some critical faults urgently needing to be repaired. Generally, software of a terminal device can be updated by using a Firmware Update Over the Air (FOTA) method, updating solutions are enriched day by day, and updating requirements containing an updating requirement for a file system are complex increasingly.
Methods for updating a file system on the basis of an FOTA technology in the current industry adopt a differential updating mode. Namely, when an update package is provided, it is necessary to generate a differential update package by means of a certain differential algorithm between an original file system to be updated and a target file system formed after updating, and in an actual updating process of the terminal device, the original file system of the terminal device is updated to the target file system by utilizing the differential update package. Thus, due to the fact that the update package only involves different parts between the file systems in two versions and identical parts are not contained in an updating range, the manufactured update package is relatively small, and quick downloading and updating can be realized.
However, there is a limitation to these updating methods. Namely, updating is only allowed to be performed between the original file system and the target file system due to the adoption of the differential algorithm. That is, when it is necessary to update some dynamic files (for example, configuration items such as a default network type, a default screen locking duration and a default browser access point, which can be changed by a user via a menu finally) in the terminal device, a software provider for manufacturing an update package or a server cannot determine specific situations of source files due to the fact that a source file system has been changed by the user. Consequently, the differential update package cannot be manufactured by using the differential algorithm for the difference between a source file and a target file, and the range within which the file system can be updated in an FOTA mode is restricted to a great extent.